Headphones — JBL TUNE FLEX GHOST EDITION

JBL's Tune Flex Ghost Edition wraps the stick-type Tune Flex earbuds and their charging case in see-through plastic, offered in purple, black and white. The electronics are those of the standard Tune Flex, so the Ghost version keeps its dual-mode fit, active noise cancelling and battery figures, and JBL's US store has listed the white model at USD 75.

Key specs that matter

The 12 mm dynamic driver used in each earpiece is specified for 20 Hz to 20 kHz, with 32 ohm impedance, 110 dB SPL sensitivity at 1 kHz and a 95 dB SPL maximum. Weight per earpiece is 4.8 g, 9.6 g for the two together, and the case adds about 38.6 g. The earpiece body is 34.9 mm high, 20.5 mm wide and 20.2 mm deep, and the case is 47.0 mm high, 51.5 mm wide and 29.3 mm deep. Up to 32 hours of music are available, made up of 8 hours from a charge of the earbuds and 24 more from the case, or 6 and 18 hours with ANC switched on. Calls run for 4.5 hours. The Ghost data sheet quotes 54 mAh lithium-ion polymer cells at 3.85 V in the earbuds and a 570 mAh, 3.85 V pack in the case. A flat set is full again in roughly 2 hours, and 10 minutes on the charger yield 2 hours of playback. Protection is IPX4 against water and sweat.

Engineering and use context

Out of the box the earbuds wear with an open tip that rests lightly without closing the ear canal, so outside sound stays audible. When isolation is wanted, the user fits one of the three supplied sealing tips and switches the JBL Headphones app to its sealing tip setting. Of the four microphones, two drive the noise cancelling, and all four pick up the voice in hands-free calls, at -38 dBV/Pa sensitivity at 1 kHz. Ambient Aware opens the earbuds to the environment, TalkThru dips the music for a quick exchange, and VoiceAware sets the level of self-monitoring on calls. Bluetooth 5.2 handles the link, with transmitter power below 11 dBm in the 2.4 to 2.4835 GHz band and GFSK, pi/4-DQPSK and 8DPSK modulation. From the app, owners can also edit touch gestures, trace a lost earpiece and pick the Smart Audio or Video mode. Operation is specified up to 45 C.

Pairing

With A2DP V1.3, AVRCP V1.6 and HFP V1.7, the earbuds take music, playback commands and phone calls from any Bluetooth-equipped handset, tablet or PC. The case recharges over USB Type-C from a 5 V 1 A power source.

Alternatives

The JBL Tune Flex 2 Ghost Edition is the newer clear-shell stick earbud from the same range.